2000 Jaguar S-Type - First Test

This Junior Cat Leaps Into Luxury Territory

If it's sleek looking, quick, and prowls as smoothly and quietly as a cat, then it must indeed be a Jaguar. But how does the eagerly awaited 2000 S-Type perform?Between late April and early May, the all-new 2000 S-Type joined Jaguar's two-seater XK8 and the longer, heavier XJ8 sedan in North American showrooms. Today, it's making a convincing statement in regard to corporate parent Ford's careful husbanding of the Jaguar brand. Initially, though, news of this junior Jag was not well received.Simply the announcement of this vehicle a few years ago garnered the type of dismissive criticism an overly ambitious high-school production of "Hamlet" might receive. Old fans of the marque arose, along with sectors of the motoring press, to express skepticism bordering on contempt for the idea of a higher-volume car. This lack of faith reached its low point when Jaguar and Ford Motor "leaked" news that a Lincoln and perhaps even a Ford would share critical parts of the baby Jaguar's suspension, select driveline pieces, and floorpan and crash structure. No doubt, visions of bechromed Taurus sedans with "leaper" mascots glued to their hoods danced in imaginations as Jaguar management attempted to explain its higher-volume, less-costly model. (Jaguar predicts sales of 20,000 units in North America in its first full year of production.) Since then, the newly announced Lincoln LS sedan and Thunderbird roadster were revealed as the car's platformmates. But given our drive and test, we're thinking the Lincoln and the T-Bird may be considerably better for the crossbreeding, rather than the Jaguar weaker for it.Particularly with the lusty 4.0-liter/281-horsepower DOHC V-8, the S-Type offers stone-serious performance. But, of course, fast without refinement wouldn't have made a proper Jaguar. What we found was a remarkable level of quiet and vibration-free muscle built into this car's powertrain.The V-8 under the S-Type's bonnet is essentially the same, 32-valve all-aluminum V-8 introduced in the XK8 in '96. Called the AJ, it makes 281 silken ponies and 287 pound-feet of torque. With essentially the same engine and almost 200 pounds less mass than the heavier XJ sedan, the S jumped to 60 mph in just 7.0 seconds and a quarter mile was consumed in 15.3 seconds at 91.9 mph. Not a BMW 540i-slayer, but it does put this sedan in such fast company as Lexus GS 300 and Mercedes-Benz E320. (Note that both of those competitors are six-cylinders. Opt for their V-8 versions, and prepare to eat Jaguar fur.)For S buyers less power hungry, an interesting alternative is a sophisticated all-aluminum, 60-degree, 3.0-liter V-6. This 7000-rpm DOHC engine generates 240 eager horsepower at 6800 rpm and 221 pound-feet of torque at 4500. And to ensure this motor will also yield low-rev grunt, as well as the obvious crank-spooling muscle, it's fitted with variable cam timing and variable intake-manifold geometry. Drivers have 90 percent of this engine's torque on tap from just 2500 rpm, and 0-60 times are about 0.5 second slower than with the V-8.Backing both of these impressive engines is an all-new, five-speed automatic designed and developed jointly by Jaguar and Ford. (The Jaguar XJ uses either a ZF or a Mercedes-Benz five-speed automatic.) This new tranny provides stellar shift quality throughout its ratio range from first up to its tall, highway-gobbling 0.75 fifth. Drivers can select "normal" or "sport" shifts using a switch on the shiftgate's trim plate. Horses surge silently through this all-aluminum box and on to the double-isolated rear differential via a laser and computer balanced two-piece steel driveshaft.If our experience in Los Angeles is at all representative, no one mistakes the S-Type for anything but a Jaguar. Most of the credit for its crisp visual signature must go to four front-end elements: the round quad lamps, the headlamp fairings that bulge out of the hood surface, the shield-like vertical-bar grille, and certainly the leaping Jaguar hood mascot. But other important Jaguar cues are the sweeping roofline and the swoopy greenhouse glass evocative of the '60s Mark 2 and the original S-Type. The final strong Jaguar styling element is the pinched haunches of the rear quarter panels. The car is clearly a bold stroke that loudly declares its familial relationship to past cats.Still, we must quibble. Let's call it the car's aspect ratio, its tallish height relative to its overall length. Because of it, the S-Type hasn't the same long, low menacing stance as do the deliciously feline-like XJ and XK. This is likely a result of providing uncharacteristically decent head- and legroom in a Jaguar. Whatever, the raw numbers support our new-proportions puzzle. We found that, although the S-Type is 6.5 inches shorter than the XJ, it's also obviously a full 3 inches taller and 0.8 of an inch wider, with a 1.5-inch longer wheelbase.Owners familiar with the larger XJ sedan's close cabin dimensions may be surprised at this smaller car's much better interior room. But in other ways, the S coddles in typical Jaguar fashion with a gracefully sculpted, full-width dash layout, warm maple veneers, soft leathers, and wide assortment of entertaining gizmos. Among the more interesting of these are rear-obstacle detection system, rain-sensing wipers, GPS navigation system, glovebox CD changer, and even a voice-activated control system. Drivers can simply ask for adjustments in the cabin temperature and radio settings and make a hands-free phone call. The optional system listens when a button on the side of the steering wheel is pushed. Frankly, we feel voice-actuated controls are more gimmick than substance. But Jag's betting a high percentage of its S-Type buyers have a higher regard for "unique" technology.Nominally, there are five leather-covered seating positions, and riding in any of the four outside spots feels sinfully luxuriant. But that rear-bench center spot is best avoided by adult-size passengers, especially for long trips.Besides the front airbags, S passengers will be protected against injury by safety belt pretensioning devices and standard side-impact airbags. Option the Jaguar Assist emergency messaging system and help is called automatically when the airbags are triggered.The new S-Type is a solid specimen. And though it weighs about 170 pounds less than the XJ, its chassis feels equally substantial. This structural integrity in combination with the quiet, fluid action and generous suspension travel gives the car an outstanding ability to soak up ruts and weather blasted expansion joints.The new car's aluminum-intensive short- and long-arm front and rear suspensions are impressive on paper. They proved equally impressive on road and track, providing standard-setting levels of quiet and smooth ride while yielding dynamic poise.The Jag's rock-solid stability, thanks to a near 50/50 weight balance, variable-ratio rack-and-pinion steering, and generous traction, make it difficult for even the adventurous to get into trouble on dry roads. But add slippery conditions and higher speeds to the driving mix, and you could be grateful for an optional electronic safety net called Dynamic Stability Control. It can automatically step in to operate each brake individually when sensors detect an oversteer condition where the vehicle is deviating from the driver's intended path.Part of the optional Sport Package is a two-stage (firm or soft) adaptive damping system, called Computer Active Technology Suspension, that optimizes the car for high-speed handling with the help of 17x7.5-inch alloy wheels fitted with wide Pirelli P Zero P235/50ZR17 tires.Our test car was equipped with the Sport Package suspension, yet it was no barn-burner in cornering grip. Its best pass through our high-speed slalom was at 63.7 mph. That puts the S-Type in the same handling class as a Cadillac STS (63.6 mph) and below the talents of other like-price rear-drive luxo/sport sedans such as the Lexus GS 400 (66.9) and BMW 528i (65.1).Cats stop quickly. So with a Jaguar tradition of braking innovation, the S-Type had a stiff standard to meet. In front are beefy 11.8-inch rotors squeezed by aluminum twin-piston calipers. At the rear, engineers ensured short, controlled stops with 11.3-inch rotors spinning through cast-iron calipers. From 60 mph, the S-Type used just a short stretch of our brake lane, requiring only 113 feet.In terms of its styling elegance, comfort features, spirited performance, mechanical sophistication, and overall refinement, the S-Type proclaims premium status and high value. But it also carries a premium pricetag. The 3.0-liter V-6 starts at $42,500, and our favorite, the 4.0-liter V-8 version, lists at $48,000. Add the $1100 Sport Package, $2000 Navigation system, or Deluxe Communications option for $4300, and you'll be comparison shopping against full-boat BMW 540i Sport models and Mercedes E430s-ready competition for the new cat on the block. We'll have that comparo test soon.